BROOKINGS, S.D. - The victory was within its grasp but Drake was unable to capitalize on a late lead in the final set as South Dakota State registered a come-from-behind 3-2 (25-19, 16-25, 20-25, 25-22, 16-14) triumph over the Bulldogs in a non-conference volleyball tilt on Monday evening (Oct. 20).

The loss was the fifth straight for Drake and dropped the Blue and White to 9-13 overall, while the Jackrabbits recorded their six consecutive win to up their ledger to 7-12.

“I was happy with our defensive effort in sets two, three and four but our lack of paying attention to detail cost us,” Drake head coach Phil McDaniel commented. “We've been talking about the mental challenge of getting through the match and unfortunately we weren't able finish tonight. Angela (Bys) was very good offensively and Alana (Wittenburg) played great defense but the efforts were wasted on the bad feeling of the loss.”

The match was a homecoming for McDaniel, who served three seasons as an assistant coach for the Jackrabbits.

The Bulldogs were poised to claim their fifth five-set victory of the season as they held a 13-10 advantage in the final stanza. South Dakota State spoiled the momentum as it rattled off four unanswered points to assume a 14-13 lead, before scoring two of the final three points to collect the victory.

Posting double-figure kills for Drake were sophomores Angela Bys (Marion, Iowa/Marion) and Alisa DeBerg Roth (Hudson, Iowa/Hudson) along with freshman Michelle Reidy (Dubuque, Iowa/Wahlert Catholic), as the trio posted 18, 10 and 10 kills, respectively.

Sophomore Alana Wittenburg (Readlyn, Iowa/Wapsie Valley) and juniors Emily Madden (Van Meter, Iowa/Adel DeSoto Minburn) and Lindsay Schryver (Williams Bay, Wis./Williams Bay) collected double-digit digs with 27, 17 and 10, while junior Chelsea Lauersdorf (Watertown, Wis./Watertown) added 42 assists.

Reidy, Madden, DeBerg Roth and junior Ashley Jarek (Appleton, Wis./Appleton North) added seven, five, five and five blocks, respectively.

Mackenzie Angner directed the Jackrabbit attack with a 27-killl and 16-dig performance.

South Dakota State registered advantages in kills (66-55), assists (60-46) and digs (90-78), while the Bulldogs posted positive results in blocks (13.5-4.0).

Drake returns to action on Friday (Oct. 24) as the Bulldogs travel to face Missouri State in a 7:00 p.m. tilt.